Research News

Scientists have identified specific compounds from the Brazilian peppertree -- a weedy, invasive shrub in Florida -- that reduce the virulence of antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria. Scientific Reports published the research, demonstrating that triterpenoid acids in the red berries of the plant "disarm" dangerous staph bacteria by blocking its ability to produce toxins.

A study completed by UnitedHealth Group with the Yale School of Medicine found that older COVID-19 patients with hypertension taking angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors had a lower risk of COVID-19 hospitalization. A pragmatic clinical trial will be a critical next step.

Patients infected with either severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) or SARS-CoV-2 produce antibodies that bind to the other coronavirus, but the cross-reactive antibodies are not cross protective, at least in cell-culture experiments, researchers report May 17 in the journal Cell Reports. It remains unclear whether such antibodies offer cross protection in the human body or potentiate disease. The findings suggest that more research is needed to identify parts of the virus that are critical for inducing a cross-protective immune response.

New research from CSHL scientists suggests that cigarette smoke spurs the lungs to make more ACE2 (angiotensin-converting enzyme 2), the protein that the coronavirus responsible for COVID-19 grabs and uses to enter human cells. The findings, reported May 16, 2020 in the journal Developmental Cell, may explain why smokers appear to be particularly vulnerable to severe infections. The analysis also indicates that the change is reversible, suggesting that quitting smoking might reduce the risk of a severe coronavirus infection.

Moderna, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines to create a new generation of transformative medicines for patients, announced positive interim clinical data of mRNA-1273, its vaccine candidate against novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), from the Phase 1 study led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), through its New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) program, has approved a project towards development of human monoclonal antibodies (hmAbs) that can neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in patients. This project on generation of neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies as a therapeutic strategy will be implemented by a multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary team.

A two-week course of antiviral therapy with interferon beta-1b plus lopinavir-ritonavir and ribavirin, started within 7 days of showing COVID-19 symptoms, is safe and more effective at reducing the duration of viral shedding than lopinavir-ritonavir alone in patients with mild to moderate illness, according to the first randomised trial of this triple combination therapy involving 127 adults (aged 18 and older) from six public hospitals in Hong Kong.

According to many observations, certain virus infections may play a part in the autoimmune attack that leads to type 1 diabetes. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and their Finnish colleagues have now produced a vaccine for these viruses in the hope that it could provide protection against the disease. The study is published today in the scientific journal Science Advances.